Torn At The Seams
by AlessandraLynn
Summary: Wednesday always turned a cold eye to whatever was going on around her, never remotely disturbed by anything. If something was happening to her family, well, that was different. T for slight language and future chapters. Set during and after Addams Family Values.
1. Chapter 1

**Something I came up with one day. I love the Addams Family Values movie, so that's why I decided to write this fic. I love the idea of Wednesday having a more vulnerable side to herself, soooo here it goes. **

Wednesday tried hard not to cry as the can pulled away from the camp, something that surprised her. She never cried, never showed any kind of sadness, let alone any emotion at all.

That all changed when she met Joel.

Joel was your stereotypical nerd: shy, awkward, not particularly attractive at first sight, definitely not someone she would expect for herself, more like someone who would be fun to torture over and over. Still, she found something intriguing about the boy, something buried deep down; she knew there was some sort of evil in there, sadistic to some extent. Wednesday never had a casual conversation about death with someone outside of her family before. They both clicked over their horrid (well, to others) personalities, but she was more up front about her sadistic mind.

"Pugsley." she whispered quietly.

"What is it, Wednesday?" He asked without looking at her. He never did.

"We're going to get to Fester in time, right?" she looked at him questioningly. He only shrugged.

"I'm not as smart as you." he admitted. "But I think we will. He'll realize she's not what he expected. He'll come home."

Wednesday turned back to the window, slightly frustrated with her younger brother. She always had to be the smart one. When Pubert was older, maybe he'll be more insightful, take after her father in becoming and intelligent person.

That is, if she let him live that long. She might have to play a few more "games" with him.

Wednesday twisted around to see the camp, already disappearing except for the orange-yellow glow of the still burning bonfire. She smirked, proud of coming up with her scheme, especially when she had nearly burned Amanda at the stake she had been tied to. God knows that barbie would have deserved it.

She would miss her, in a way. It had been fun pushing her to the limit until she cracked under pressure. The only people she hated more were Gary and Becky, only favoring her small group of over the top cheery-and bitchy-beach blondes.

At least they couldn't bother her now.

Wednesday kept her mind on ways to kill Gary and Becky to keep herself amused for the trip home, hoping it would go by quickly. Soon enough, the familiar and welcoming eeriness of the gothic mansion loomed out of the darkness, just as she imagined tying the couple to a car, then speeding to the max over a rocky terrain. She sighed as she leapt out of the car and knocked on the door.

Never before in her life had she remembered being so happy to see Lurch again.

"Where are my parents?" she asked flatly, but Lurch saw the anxiety in her eyes.

Remaining silent as usual, he led the way to their parent's room, where Wednesday never went very often. She couldn't hear anything coming from Pubert's room.

The whole family turned out to be in their parent's bedroom, surrounding the large bed heaped in black silk and dead vines around the wrought iron frame. Gomez lay delirious in bed, mumbling something about Fester, with Morticia and Grandmama sitting in distress on either side of him. What scared her the most, however, was the severely altered appearance of her baby brother.

Pubert's sleek black locks had transformed into frizzy curls of a ghastly blonde that reminded her of Amanda. His pale complexion was now adorned with rosy cheeks and what were becoming dimples on a nauseatingly adorable smile.

"My darlings, thank goodness!" Morticia held out her arms to her children, who eagerly ran into them. Wednesday had never hugged her mother like this before. Tonight was probably a first time for everything.

"Is father okay?" Pugsley questioned in alarm. Wednesday inwardly rolled her eyes at his stupidity. If Pubert was cured soon, she would definitely let him live longer.

Morticia gazed down at her husband, sorrow glinting in her strange, mysterious eyes.

"Just after Fester went on his honeymoon, Fester sent that letter saying he could never see us again. The next morning, Grandmama found Pubert like this, and Gomez fell ill not long after." she mourned. "What distress Debbie has brought on our family!"

Gomez was staring straight up at the ceiling with a blankness in his eyes that frightened Wednesday; she had never seen her father so pathetic, with such fearfulness and longing. All because Fester decided to fall in love- or lust.

Wednesday made up her mind to give Debbie a slow, violent death as soon as possible.

She spent the rest of the late night and murky early morning by her father's bedside.

Morticia's arm was wrapped tightly around her as she stared expressionlessly down at Pubert. That poor, poor boy.

Wednesday thought about all the crap she had gone through when Debbie arrived. Fester was unwillingly torn from the family while she endured that awful camp, her father and brother falling fatally ill. Not to mention the fact she would probably never see Joel again, she liked him very much. That kiss through the chain linked fence was enough to prove that.

She sighed again as she shifted her gaze to her father, now singing quietly in a quivering voice. Grandmama went to put Pubert to bed, and she hoped that she would wake up from this awful nightmare soon.

Wednesday was a strong girl, and nothing ever fazed her, not even a gruesome murder a few feet away from her. But when her family was being torn apart mercilessly, she had to give in. She leaned into her mother's embrace, hoping that the brightening sun over thin grey clouds would bring better news.

The whole morning passed by agonizingly slowly, as did the afternoon. By the time the sky was darkening, there was still nothing.

Just when she was about to give up her stone cold facade and break down, a noise was heard downstairs. Someone was panting hard.

Fester burst into the room looking like he'd returned from the dead. The expensive white suit he wore was stained and ripped, his body covered in ashes from head to toe. His already hallowed eyes were sunken in even further as he took in the sight before him.

"Gomez!" he gasped as he ran towards the bed, collapsing in front of his brother. Wednesday slid into the shadows.

The whole family watched as Gomez's eyes slowly slid from the ceiling down to his brother, the blankness in his eyes clearing quickly.

"I…I thought you weren't to ever see us again!" he croaked, barely audible.

"I'm here now, brother, I promise!" he sobbed, his whole body shaking. "I'm-I'm not sure about this married life anymore. I want to come home."

"But you belong to Debbie!" Gomez cried out, his words striking like a whip against Fester's mind. "Debbie owns you now!"

Fester shook his head violently, curling in on himself while muffled sobs leaked into the room.

"You…" Gomez dramatically sobbed, "are Mr. Debbie!"

_"I am an Addams!" _he burst from his position.

"Brother!"

"Brother!"

They fiercely embraced each other, although without violence of any kind; no one was even being thrown against a wall. This was a very special moment for them, indeed.

"Uncle Fester!" Pugsley left her side and ran into Fester's arms.

"Oh, children, I've missed you so!" He looked at Wednesday and held out his other arm hopefully. Wednesday advanced with no emotion.

"She sent us to camp." Fester's face fell.

"They made us sing." There was a collective gasp drawn from the family. Fester's arm was still held out apologetically.

She couldn't resist.

Wednesday ran towards him with relish, enjoying the feeling of his strong, heavy arms wrapping around her. She'd missed him more than she realized. The family surrounded themselves around the bed, Morticia reaching for Gomez and Fester's arms.

"The whole family, all together again at last." She sighed happily. "Three generations above ground!"

Wednesday could have smiled, and this one would have been on her own will.

The happiness was soon to be stopped.

"In-laws!" rang a familiar, horrible sounding voice.

Debbie stood in the doorway, beautiful and psychotic, machine gun in hand.

**That's all I've made up for now, I was hoping to elaborate more with the next chapter. Stay tuned and please review!**


	2. Chapter 2

Although Wednesday hated the woman with a passion, she couldn't help but admire and wonder how Deb got them all into electric chairs with the threat of one single gun.

"I don't like hurting people." Debbie spat forcefully. "I don't _enjoy_ hurting people! But we don't always get what we want.

'Said the woman who had Fester at her beck and call' Wednesday scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"I wasn't always like this." she continued. "Up until I was ten, I was a perfect little angel, with no problems in the world."

Wednesday looked around at her family, seeing the unanimous doubt etched on their faces. Debbie always wanted the attention on her, even if she had to resort to electric chairs…oh wait, she did.

"My tenth birthday!" She shouted. "All I wanted was a Ballerina Barbie. My parents were very kind and decent people, they could have listened to that."

The slideshow switched to a picture of a couple in front of a small house.

"But what did I see when I opened that box?" Debbie became agitated. "_Malibu _Barbie."

The next picture showed a young Debbie in a pink party dress, with an enraged stance and expression.

"That's not what I wanted! That's not who I _was!_ I was a _ballerina, _GRACEFUL! DELICATE!" she took a deep breath. "They had to go."

She turned eagerly towards the slideshow, showing her parent's house in and the rest were forced to listen to her ridiculous complaints, pulling an axe on her first husband when he worked too much, and a knife on her second when he didn't allow her to buy a Mercedes. She silently begged Debbie would turn on the chairs already, anything would be better than the aching shackles around her wrists and head.

"Finally, my late husband." She clicked the remote, showing a smiling photo of her uncle unless perched atop a nice car. "Fester."

She wanted to vomit at the shy smirk Fester was showing now.

"You took me in, you accepted me." Here she began to wail. "But did any of you really LOVE me?"

Here she goes.

"I'm not proud of all my killings, destroying one life after another out of greed, but I was so upset I had no other option! They don't get that I am human, too! Don't you believe that? Don't I feel _emotion _like humans are supposed to do? Don't I _yearn, _and _ache, _and…and SHOP?"

Wednesday was no mind reader, but she knew the rest of the family thought she needed some serious time in a rubber room.

"Don't I DESERVE…love?" Not the way she was going with this.

Wednesday's eyes were drawn to the door, which was opened just a crack. Through it, she could see a shadow the size of a baby crawling up the steps, wisely not making a sound.

Pubert. But what in the world could he do?

Debbie was still going on with her speech when she noticed Pubert creep up behind the chairs and towards and open space.

"So…" Debbie dramatically stalked over to the switch. "Goodbye, Addams. Wish me luck."

"Good luck." everyone sighed at once. Wednesday noticed that Pubert was back to his old self now, and sitting on the pile of cables that led to the chairs. Debbie pulled the switch halfway down, starting the machine, not noticing Pubert. She pulled the lever down all the way with a smirk on her face, watching the blue glow of electricity snake up the cables, where it would reach the pile Pubert was sitting on and make its way to all of the family.

Pubert, with a small giggle, picked up the cable that the electricity was currently running down and attached it to another one that would lead straight back to the lever. It was then Debbie noticed the small boy, and barely had time to compose an expression of shock before the voltage reached her.

Wednesday watched with delight, though it did not show on her face, as Debbie's eyes went wide and her Amanda-blonde hair stood stick straight. A pile of ashes was slowly growing on the floor, where her feminine white pumps clattered on to the wood. Debbie's face was still visible, still displaying an expression of shock and horror as her face dissolved and her diamond necklace landed on to the pile ash.

Wednesday had never been more pleased to hear Pubert's joyful laugh as he held up the cable in triumph. The boy would definitely stay alive.

Pubert was lucky to have made it to his first birthday. After all, he did save the family's lives. That was something Wednesday could be grateful for. Just then, Fester barged in, interrupting her thoughts.

"Ah, I see the birthday boy is ready! Because I have presents for him!" Fester was acting like a young child. She loved it when he did that, he was so much more animated.

"To think, I would have missed this because…of…"His voice and expression both faltered as the unspoken name of his ex-wife hung in the air.

Debbie. The name no longer brought a shiver of horror up her spine, but did, in fact, cause great annoyance. The only thing she did admire about her was her crime style, how she went so long without getting caught.

She shoved her thoughts aside-for the fifth time today-as Pugsley spoke up.

"Do you miss Debbie at all, Uncle Fester?" Fester sighed.

"Sometimes…at night. I remember how often she would roll over and say, 'JESUS, FESTER, GET BACK TO YOUR OWN ROOM!'" He said, imitating her frightening expression perfectly, then laughing.

"Children!" Morticia glided down the main stairs. "Fester, put those gifts in the parlor, I want the children to meet our new nanny."

She opened the door to reveal a tall, somewhat thin woman whose facial features were very similar to Festers, sporting a dark green, old-fashioned gown with a matching hat perched atop a brown curly wig, as Wednesday realized when she took off the hat revealing a bald head.

"Children, this is Dementia." Dementia smiled hauntingly at the group.

"Oh, Dementia!" Fester playfully growled. "What a marvelous name!"

"Thank you." she said in a low voice. "It means 'insanity.'"

"Mine is Fester." he smiled proudly. "It means 'to rot.'"

'He's definitely over Debbie now' Wednesday cringed. She followed the group into the parlor, where Pubert's birthday party was being held. Most of the family was there, including Joel. Luckily, her parents didn't ask why, just went along with it.

Wednesday found herself thinking about when she saw him again after she escaped.

_She looked down at the piece of paper holding the address again to the thousandth time, and back up to the plain but quite large house. She sighed, this was definitely the Glicker residence. There was no turning back for her as she slowly walked up the sidewalk. _

_It wasn't very hard to find the address, she just had to sneak into the main office as a few counselors tried to untie Gary and Becky, find the applications, and seek his address. _

_Wednesday heard a small noise coming from a tree not too far from her. She could just make out the figure of a small, skinny boy through the dense green foliage. She wanted to smile, this time genuinely, as she advanced until she was positioned right beneath the tree. It took Joel about three seconds to put down his book and realize she was there. _

_"Whoa…Wednesday Addams? What are you doing here?" He adjusted his position and tried to slide smoothly off the branch, but instead tumbled to the ground. She smirked at his clumsiness and held out a hand, which he accepted gratefully. _

_"Thanks…what are you doing here?" He repeated._

_ "I…I missed you." She admitted. "I'm sorry I had to leave after that kiss, but I had no choice. Debbie was going to murder my uncle." _

_"How did it turn out?" _

_"We were all united briefly, until she got us all into electric chairs with the threat of only a single gun. She gave us a history of her life, which was basically shit in her eyes, then my baby brother figured out how to redirect the current when she turned on the lever and cremated her. I'm letting Pubert live until at least twenty." _

_"That's good." Joel sounded relieved. "At least all the rich bachelors can relax now."_

_He suddenly stepped closer to her. _

_"I've missed you, too. It's been so boring since I've got back, my parents have all but locked me up because I'm turning into a 'rebel.'"_

_"No offense, but your parents are the worst." _

_"Don't I know it, I'd give anything to have a family like yours."_

_The emotion was too much for Wednesday, whose eyes filled with tears she hadn't cried for a long time as she flung her arms around his neck. Joel was startled at first, but relaxed into her grip and hugged her tightly around the waist._

_ "I've gone through so much crap lately, I'm glad I came to find you." She whispered into his neck. _

_"Yeah…how'd you find my address?" _

_"They need to have better security at that camp, it was way too easy. I was thinking about how many people I could poison in one hour, I could get into cabins so quick." _

_He pulled back to look at her. _

_"You say that like you've actually done it." _

_"I stood over Amanda's bunk for hours at a time almost every night, but I kept thinking about how her robot camp directors would throw me in prison. Instead, I gave her nightmares. She's too easy to scare." _

_"I loved it whenever you said you scared her, I liked the expression on your face. I think it was the only positive emotion you had the whole time I've known you." Even Wednesday had to admit it was true. _

_"Before I forget, Pubert's birthday is coming soon. Do you wanna come?" He noticed she used the same tone she had used when she invited him to Fester's wedding. "As a sort of…date?" _

_He gave a shy half smile. "Sure. I'll sneak out. They never check on me." _

_"Great. So…I guess I'll see you." She began to walk away. _

_"Wait." He caught up with her, drew her to him, and kissed her gently, just as he did when the separated at the camp. _

_"Just in case." _

_"In case of what?" _

_"In case I don't get to do that for a while." Wednesday was about to give her usual smirk, when she changed her mind. She decided to give Joel her first real smile. His response was to hug her close to him again. _

_"I'll see you around." She said, reluctantly pulling away. _

_"__Yeah…see ya." Wednesday turned and walked back up the side walk, down the main road that would lead to her house. Thank God Joel's house was remotely close to her own._

She sighed as she went over to stand next to Joel, a glass of champagne in each of their hands.

"What a glorious day!" Gomez praised. "A day devoted to merriment, to mirth…to manslaughter."

Unheard laughter trickled through the room.

"To old friends, and new…"His eyes passed over Wednesday. "To youth!"

"How do I look?" Joel smirked, looking much like her father in a dark suit and thick, drawn on eyebrows.

"Disturbing." As much as she loved him, she had to admit it.

"To love, to life…"Gomez turned to Morticia. "To paradise." The two leaned in for a kiss just as the door barged open, revealing a very jubilant Grandmama carrying Pubert, who was adorned in a ruffled suit he probably didn't like very much.

"Make way for the birthday boy!" she announced enthusiastically.

"Thing, will you do the honors?" The severed hand reached for a match, swiped it against the rough wood, and lit the candle perched atop the cake set to resemble a guillotine. Lurch began to play the piano as the entire family reluctantly sang along to the joyful tune, then swarmed over to the cake. Wednesday nibbled on her own small slice and kept looking over at Joel, barely touching his.

She was able to endure around an hour of the festivities, then asked Joel to come for a walk in the graveyard with her. He sponged off the eyebrows and eagerly followed her outside into the warm night air.

"You know, I really like your family." Joel said as he sat next to her on a bench. "Everyone seems to get along, especially your parents. They're so involved with each other. Do you ever think…maybe you'd want to get married and have kids one day?"

Wednesday turned toward him, expecting the question.

"No."

Joel was slightly put off by this, but inched closer to her.

"Well, what if you met a man who dedicated his whole life to you, who worshipped you and would become your most devoted servant? Then what would you do?" Wednesday paused.

"I'd pity him." She said flatly as she stared straight into his eyes.

In her mind that meant she loved him for enduring her. She had a hunch that Joel hadn't minded.

They slowly walked along the path, over to a new gravestone that read:

_Debbie Jellinsky Addams_

_Wife and Psycho_

"Poor Debbie." Joel said as he knelt in front of her grave. "She was sick."

"She was sloppy."

"…What do you mean?" he asked cautiously.

"I mean, if I wanted to kill my husband without getting caught, I'd do it."

"How?" Joel asked. He was starting to get a little disturbed.

"Easy. I'd _scare _him to death." Joel had no doubt that she could. He shrugged and began to place a withered flower on her grave.

"Debbie, I wish you only the best." Just as he was about to pull his hand away, a bloody hand shot up from the dirt and grasped his wrist. Joel screamed unashamedly like a female as he struggled to get loose.

Wednesday smiled malevolently. She would have to think Thing later.

**Thank God, finally, this chapter's done. I had to watch the last bit of the movie a few times so I could get this part somewhat right. NOW we can get started on the Wednesday/Joel stuff. Review, please, and thank you for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

After convincing Joel that the disembodied hand was just Thing having some fun and keeping him from passing out, they made their way back through the party, which was beginning to wind down. Uncle Fester was passed out on the sofa with Dementia leaning on his shoulder, her grandmother sat staring blankly across the room with a half empty glass of wine, and her parents were nowhere to be seen. She always knew exactly where and why they disappeared so frequently.

"Whoa." Joel looked carefully around the room. "Your family sure knows how to party."

"Sometimes too much for their own good." Wednesday sighed. "Last time it happened during Pugsley's birthday, we had to stop Cousin Itt from destroying the parlor, I don't have a clue what he drank that night."

"They're pretty crazy, but they're way more interesting than mine."

"Yours are high society wannabes with almost no class whatsoever on the inside."

"Yeah, pretty much."

The pair stood in silence staring at the remnants of the family until Fester and Dementia began to stir from their positions.

"Let's go, you don't wanna see this." Joel had no choice but to agree when he saw the drunken glaze to Fester's eyes.

Wednesday grabbed hold of his arm and quickly dragged him up the main staircase as quietly as possible, but it was almost impossible because the ancient, splintery wood often creaked underfoot. She paused ever so slightly for a second before proceeding to her room. She didn't want him to think she wanted to go further.

'I mean, we're not even in a real relationship yet, it's ridiculous.' she thought to herself.

She hesitated again just before opening her door and leading him inside. At least here she'd feel a little more comfortable.

Her room reflected the eerie yet elegant charm the old mansion had, with high, arched wooden ceilings polished black, as were the walls and floor. Her walls were decorated with several quotes depressing enough to cause lifelong grief, and extremely realistic paintings gory enough to make one vomit. Her furniture was the same black velvet as the downstairs parlor, which was one of the most elegant rooms in the house, with canopy bed grand enough to be expected for Wednesday, heaped yet again in midnight black. Some might find her room disturbing, but if anyone outside her family could stomach it, Joel could. He nodded approvingly at the walls as Wednesday turned on the lights.

"Nice pictures." He commented. "They look so real. I though this guy getting his intestines ripped out was actually real for a second."

"I made that when I was younger." Wednesday gently stroked the painting. "Father almost didn't let me hang it at first, since I was 11 and he thought it was too violent, but decided on it in the end. I think the real deciding factor was the fact that since I actually made it, I could stomach it. At least it's kept Pugsley out of here, he's much too vulnerable."

"I see. How old is he, really?"

"Twelve."

"And you're…thirteen?"

"Fourteen."

"Oh, okay." Joel was secretly glad; He had just turned fourteen a few days before Wednesday went to visit him for the first time since camp, and didn't want there to be an awkward age difference.

"But most people say I have my mother's head. Sometimes I think I'm too smart for my own good." She smirked.

"Exactly how?" Said Joel, who was starting to get nervous again.

"When I was just six, I found our electric chairs in the attic and figured out how they worked. It only took me around a year to get them all working again. Yesterday I figured out how to increase the voltage to make death even more painful." What was most surprising was her casual tone, which made Joel uneasy.

"It's weird." He commented. "Sometimes I can have such light conversations with you about something like this, and other times, you start to scare me. Badly."

Wednesday only smirked again, but inside she felt a sense of pride. At least she'd found a boy who was used to (and could nearly match) her superiority, but could also succumb to it when needed.

She couldn't ask for anything more perfect.

"Are you alright? I know Thing scared you earlier, but he was just having some fun." Wednesday asked as she sank down on to a nearby sofa.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Joel sat next to her. "I knew you had a disembodied hand around the house, I just didn't expect to meet it that way."

"Don't ever expect the norm from our family, that's the first rule." She sighed.

"I thought the first one was to suck it up and don't get scared before you meet the whole family?" Wednesday chuckled.

"Actually, some of our family members are quite…average. Much like your parents, except nicer and with a touch of the family personality."

"Ah, I see." Joel shifted closer to her. "I'm glad I met you first, I would have never held up if I had met your Uncle Fester first. He still scares me."

"Give it some time, you'll get used to it fast. Especially if you socialize often, which I encourage." She said gently; Joel was such a sensitive boy. "Uncle Fester's really the life of the party once you get to know him."

"I think I saw that downstairs…" Wednesday chuckled as Joel looked at her in surprise.

"What?"

"I-I've never heard you laugh before. Why not?" she shrugged.

"I don't laugh. There's usually nothing to laugh at. At least, not around here there isn't."

Indeed, there was nothing to laugh about around the Addam's Mansion; everything was at minimum deadly serious, if not deadly in general. Things were much too frightening to laugh at, unless people who were frightened reacted amusingly. That didn't happen often, seeing as hardly anyone new came to the old house. In a way, the house was represented by her perfectly, all pale and black, with a serious and disturbing tone. She'd spent too much time here, she had to admit it.

Even Joel could see it. "Tell you what. Maybe we can escape the house for once and just go somewhere nice. Even you have to admit that this is way too depressing sometimes."

He was right.

"I don't know." she sighed. "It's my home, it's part of me. Yes, it does sometimes depress me that I am often stuck here with nowhere else to be. I think a night out sounds…inviting."

"Perfect. Do you have any ideas? I'm just as much a loner as you." he laughed nervously. Wednesday thought for a minute, until a bit of their conversation earlier came back to her.

"You said your cousins were in town. What if we all do something together?"

"Okay, but I'm warning you now-their idea of fun is going to 5 star restaurants and seeing classic plays like Shakespeare-and those are the cousins just a year older than us." To Joel's surprise, Wednesday nodded in agreement.

"Actually, Shakespeare is the only thing i can stomach that isn't remotely gory or disturbing. A play does sound rather nice." Joel smiled in relief. At least he'd have company-and a few people on hand for dating advice.

"Perfect, what about Saturday? Around 6:30?"

"Excellent." Now that they'd stopped talking, she noticed how close they were; she could have held his hand.

"Okay, then…" The clocked chimed 11 o'clock, saving Joel from an awkward silence. "I'd better go, my parents will kill me. Saturday, 6:30, don't forget?"

"It's at the top of my head." She joked. Wait…joked? Was Joel becoming a _positive _influence? She shook it off. "I'll walk you out."

The pair exited her room in silence, side by side as they walked down the stairs and to the front hall. Joel looked at her curiously for a moment, hesitating, before Wednesday brushed her lips against his.

"Saturday. I'll be here." she lead him out the door, closing it softly behind him.

Whoa.

The only word that could possibly describe the entire ordeal is _whoa. _

What was she turning into?

Just 2 hours before Joel would arrive, Wednesday glared at her wardrobe in disgust ; now that she actually wanted to impress, her clothing said otherwise. She wore the same thing nearly everyday; grey sweater and skirt, white stockings, laced Mary Janes. She scoffed as she ripped through her more formal dresses. These were ruled out; the black, tight-fitting dresses she had reminded her too much of her mother-elegant, spider-like, mostly glittery, more suited for a Halloween party than an evening out. For once in her life, Wednesday understood the frustration of an average teenage girl with nothing to wear.

It was time to talk to her mother.

"Mother?" rang Wednesday's voice through the study. Morticia looked up from her knitting to see her daughter anxiously waiting by the door.

"Yes, Wednesday, what is it?" She shifted her work aside. "Come, sit."

Wednesday sank next to her mother. "You know Joel?"

"Yes, he's quite the young man."

"Well, he invited me to spend an evening with his cousins on Saturday. I have a feeling it's going to be rather formal, so…would you mind helping with my…wardrobe options?"

Morticia blinked in surprise. Her daughter, asking for fashion advice? It was about time.

"Of course, darling. Come with me." Wednesday followed her mother upstairs to her room and sat on the bed while her mother searched around in one of the many wardrobe scattered throughout the room. Why was she in here?

"Where on earth did I place it?" she murmured, frowning slightly. Just then, Thing skittered into the room and jumped on to her dresser. "Of course!"

Morticia glided across the room and knelt in front of her dresser, removing a white box from the biggest drawer in triumph. She settled with Wednesday on her bed.

"Your aunt made me promise to give this to you, she told me she was getting tired of your monotonous clothing choices." Wednesday took the box from her and lifted the lid. Gently unwrapping a paper package, she was surprised when a brilliant blue material fell on to her lap, spilling over her legs like a waterfall. Morticia held it up, and Wednesday could see a simple but quite pretty knee-length navy blue dress, with thick straps and a bow strapped around the waist.

"I actually like it."

"You do, now?"

"Yes, it is rather pretty." Both Wednesday and Morticia had the same thought: this was not like her.

"Thank you." Wednesday carefully gathered the material in her arms and sped out of the room, afraid her mother would question her sudden change in character. She really did like Joel, so what did it matter if she was slightly less dark?

Wednesday gently hung up the dress in her wardrobe, taking a second to admire the rich hue. Joel would certainly like this, as did she.

**Well, would you look at that. It's been a month since my last post. It's not at all uncommon for me, but it is a habit that I should break. I know Wednesday's getting a little OOC, but hey, she's a teenage girl, and those feelings really needed to be worked into her personality. Review and tell me what you think, you guys are awesome!**


	4. Chapter 4

At exactly 6:25 pm, Wednesday was staring at herself in the mirror in astonishment. Most people mistook her mother for a witch, and she believed her mother did really have some magic.

Just as Wednesday hung up her dress, Morticia had burst in, claiming that she had to get ready. She didn't really need 2 hours to get ready, did she?

Yes, yes she did.

Her mother had lightly curled her ink dark hair and pulled it half up, letting it cascade down her back and showing off tiny blue earrings and a silver chain necklace with a large sapphire stone. The dress her aunt had given her fit perfectly against her slender body, making her look less pale. Wednesday liked the way the straps looked on her shoulders, and the feeling of the soft material around her long legs, her feet now in silver flats. Morticia insisted that she wear make-up, her eyes even more visible by mascara and black liner.

"One more thing, dear, I promise." Morticia slid a small silver band off her finger and on to hers.

"Perfect, you look beautiful. Joel will be wonderfully surprised."

"Thank you, Mother." Wednesday smiled, hugging her around the waist. Morticia smiled, her daughter rarely did so anymore. She was beginning to like the sound of Joel.

"Just be careful not to ruin anything. Remember, Joel's cousin's aren't familiar with us at all, so be sure to-"

"Not mention anything gory, dark, or anything considered disturbing." Wednesday finished. "I know. You've told Pugsley whenever you went to school affairs."

"You've caught on well. Go downstairs, he'll be here soon."

Joel stood nervously at the front entrance to the Addam's Mansion, in a white dress shirt and black pants with his hair loose and curly, debating whether to knock just then or wait until exactly 6:30. He really hoped Wednesday was telling the truth when she said she liked Shakespeare, because his cousins had obtained tickets to see _Hamlet_, which was coincidentally his favorite.

Yes, a 14 year old reading Shakespeare, get over it.

He raised his hand to knock on the solid wood door when it swept open with a flourish, Gomez standing just inside with open arms.

"Joel, young man, come in!" He smiled widely, ushering him inside. "She'll be down in a moment. Where are you planning on taking her? A walk through the graveyard, perhaps dinner at the Underground bistro?"

"Actually, my cousins were in town and got tickets to _Hamlet, _and Wednesday agreed to come with us."

"Ah, the classics!" Gomez exclaimed, his signature bravado in full swing. "The only thing my daughter is interested in that is considered normal in this society!"

He scoffed in mock disgust and Joel tried hard not to laugh. He had a feeling that they would get along just fine.

"Gomez." Came Morticia's soft voice at the top of the stairs. Joel looked up at his-hopefully-girlfriend in amazement.

He barely recognized Wednesday, clad in a flowing azure blue dress with her hair rippling down her back in soft curls, her obsidian eyes wider and more noticeable than usual. She gently smiled down at him and walked down the steps.

"I'm ready, are you?"

"Um, yeah. You look amazing, by the way." He stuttered.

"Thank you." She smiled shyly, linking her arm with his. "Let's go. Mother, Father, I'll be home soon."

"Have fun, my dear, try not to get killed!" Morticia advised.

"If it does happen, you have permission to-how do you say it today?-'kick their ass.'" Gomez added awkwardly, making the pair smile.

"I'll keep her safe, don't worry." The pair walked out on to the road that led up to Joel's house, where his cousins would be picking them up.

"I...got something for you." Joel turned to Wednesday, who looked at him in curiosity. "I didn't want to do it at the house, in case your parents thought it was too serious."

He put his hand in his pocket and produced a small red rose, handing it to her nervously.

"It's beautiful, thank you." She smiled at him. "Don't worry about it being to serious. My parents met at a funeral and couldn't stop staring at each other, and he proposed that night."

"Whoa, that's love at first sight!"

"I almost think they're expecting us to be the same, only wait until we're 20 for the marriage proposal."

"Yes, because 14 year olds getting married after a funeral is completely normal." Wednesday giggled just as Joel's cousins pulled up in a blue van.

"Joel, it's good to see you!" A tall, blonde haired boy gracefully stepped out of the driver's side and walked towards them. "This is Wednesday, I presume?"

"Yes. Wednesday, this is Jackson. He's the one who had the idea for the play."

"It's nice to meet you." She extended her hand shyly as he took it with ease.

"Pleasure's all mine, Joel's been talking about you nonstop. You sound like a wonderful person." He smiled brightly at her.

"Thank you. What play are we seeing?"

"Hamlet." Joel was surprised to see Wednesday's eyes light up.

"That's one of my favorites, actually. I'm not usually into tamer things." Jackson laughed.

"Hamlet, tame? And what would you consider your area of preference?" Joel mentally face palmed himself, he should have warned them.

"I'm…more of a horror type of person. You know, murderers running around in chainsaws and slaughtering everything in sight kind of thing." She blushed, realizing what she just said.

"Girl with a strong stomach, that's cool." Jackson replied with ease, and she internally sighed in relief. "Come on, we'll be late."

Wednesday stepped inside the van, Joel just behind her as his cousins introduced themselves. She spent the car ride chatting comfortably with them, while Joel's arm was hidden around her waist. She was secretly glad for it, to be honest; Wednesday wasn't exactly social. Look, we've been through this, but Joel's cousins were very open and she got along with them quite nicely.

"Alright, let's do this!" Katherine-a very pretty brunette-smiled as she jumped out of the car in excitement. Joel stepped out behind her and reached for Wednesday's hand, putting an arm around her waist.

"You ready?"

"I guess. I've never really been out like this before."

"I would imagine." He blurted out, and quickly looked down in slight embarrassment.

"It's okay, I know I've never left my house. To be truthful, I didn't think I was missing anything until now. Let's go in." She smirked and gestured towards the theater as he put an arm around her waist and followed his cousins inside.

To Joel's surprise, Wednesday was unusually attentive to the play, hanging on to the ancient Shakespearian english he was sure she understood perfectly. Although her face gave away little of any emotion during more intense scenes, her black eyes had a rare shimmer in them that told him more than she could ever say in person, even with her vocabulary. She, too, was as captivated by theater as his cousins were, and was glad that he had found something they both enjoyed.

"So, did you like it?" He asked gently when the lights came back on and people began to leave the theater. "I mean, I know it's kinda-"

"It was wonderful, Joel, don't worry." She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "Like I said, I love Shakespeare. Your cousins are actually very sweet."

She gave him a small, but genuine, smile which he happily returned as he lead her out to the car. Joel's cousins kept themselves busy with the quality of the play while Wednesday and Joel sat in the backseat, her head on his shoulder and his arm around her waist. She looked so pretty tonight. Maybe they should go out another night…

"Hey, lovebirds, we're home!" Katherine laughed lightly at the two. Joel looked down at Wednesday, whose eyes were drooping slightly.

"W-Wednesday? We're here, come on." He nudged her gently as she slowly sat up, blinking at her surroundings as Joel helped her out of the car.

"You two holding up okay?" Ameigh asked the pair, chuckling slightly at Wednesday's tiredness.

"I'm fine, I'm just a little tired. Joel, would you mind taking me home, please?" She looked up at him with a slightly fatigued expression and he nodded down at her.

The night would have been perfect had Joel's parents not come outside.

"So, kids, how was the play? Was it as good as back home, or more intense? Joel, you know you don't handle things like-Who's the girl?" His father managed to spit out all at once. His mother mirrored his confused expression.

"Um, mom, dad, I think you remember Wednesday. From camp." Wednesday gave them a gentle smile and a polite nod, hoping they didn't remember a certain incident involving the destruction of Gary's play, as well as half the camp.

Their widened eyes told her only one thing: they did.

"Yeah, so…I'm going to walk her home, I'll be back in about 10 minutes, okay?" He took Wednesday's hand and tugged her down the road before his parents could say anything. The pair was silent until Wednesday was sure they were out of earshot, then said one thing.

"They hate me." Joel was so caught off guard by the bluntness of her sentence he didn't know what to say for a moment.

"Wait, what?"

"Don't try to make me feel better, because I don't care anyways. I know they hate me."

"I wouldn't say hate, they looked kind of scared." He shrugged.

"They should be." Wednesday sighed with a small smirk that Joel smiled at.

"I take it you enjoy when people are absolutely terrified of you?"

"Only when they're people I hate." She smiled, squeezing his hand and barely shivering at the cool night air.

"Are you cold?"

"It's fine, we're almost home." She shook her head, though she didn't object when Joel threw an arm around her shoulders and gently rubbed her arm, brushing his lips against her forehead.

"Come on, we're here, you okay?" he asked, noticing how tired she looked.

"Stop worrying, I'm just tired. All I need to do is sleep." She giggled, yawning slightly. "Thanks for the wonderful evening."

"No problem. Maybe we should plan another night out, just the two of us."

"I'd like that. Good night." He quickly drew her into his arms and hugged her tightly for a moment, then quickly kissed her. "Call me tomorrow afternoon, okay?"

"I will." He reassured her, opening the front door for her. She smiled as she stepped into the foyer and gently closed it behind her, making her way upstairs. At least her parents weren't the interrogating type and had presumably gone to bed some time ago. She sponged off the make-up on her eyes, hung her dress in the wardrobe, and changed into her pajamas. As she collapsed on her bed and let her eyes shut, she found herself looking forward to Joel's call tomorrow.

**Okay, you guys are going to hate me for this, but I legitimately forgot about this story for at least several months and I do owe you guys a massive apology. I'll start planning for the next chapter soon, maybe beginning with a little intervention from Joel's parents…review, please, thank you so much for being patient with me!**


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